Arizona and New Mexico 2-8 May

Two of my buddies and I will be touring Arizona and New Mexico for the next week, 2-8 May. Maybe we’ll see some of you out on the road. We should be on CB channel 31.

Bikes:
—My 2016 Orange Metallic F6B
—2001 Yellow GL1800
—1998 Red and Cream Valkyrie Tourer (special paint)

The Plan:
Wed, 2nd — I-25 south Pueblo CO to Trinidad to Raton Pass to Santa Fe NM to Socorro for night (had planned to go through the CO mountains but good chance of snow at the higher elevations; typical spring weather)

Thurs, 3rd — US-60 west across NM to Eagar AZ to Petrified Forest National NP to Flagstaff for night; may run up to the South Rim but have been there many times (but always good)

Fri, 4th — Flagstaff to Oak Creek Canyon to Sedona to Jerome to Camp Verde to Payson for the night; visiting old friends who live here

Sat, 5th — Payson east to Show Low south to Salt River Canyon to Globe east to Thatcher/Safford for the night; evening ride up the Mt Graham road.

Sun, 6th — Safford to Clifton/Morenci to Copper Mine north to Coronado Trail (US-191; awesome ride) to Hannagan Meadow to Alpine east to NM south to Silver City for the night

Mon, 7th — Silver City east -152 through the mountains to I-25 north; stop in San Antonio for green chili burger north I-25 then east and north on the east side of the Sandia Mountains (maybe ride to the top of Sandia Peak) and north on the backroads to Santa Fe for the night

Tue, 8th — Santa Fe north to Chama east to Cumbres and LaManga Passes to Antonio north to Alamosa CO to Poncha Springs to home

Should be a fun trip.

Excellent itinerary. West of Socorro, N.M. the Very Large Array radio telescope is worth a stop. You can't miss it with the huge antennas right next US-60. The amount of science that went into creating this is unbelievable.

Riding US-191 (the Devil's Highway) northbound in my opinion is a much more enjoyable experience than riding it southbound. The town of Clifton is a great place to poke around for a little while. Chase Creek street, the main street of Clifton is like stepping back in time a hundred years. the old jail across from the railroad station is also very neat. The Morenci Mine is unbelievable. You can see one of the maintenance facilities right next to the road and the mine trucks are huge. They have a capacity of 230 tons. It is hard to imagine how much ore is carried out of the mine when it is 460,000 lbs a truck load. There is also a viewing area where you can look into the pit. It is amazing.

US-180 from Alpine, Az to Silver City N.M. is another good ride but watch for tar snakes. NM-152 is also fun road

And lastly the Buckhorn Tavern in San Antonio N.M. is a place I will ride out of my way to visit. You are right the green chili cheeseburgers are the best.

It should be a great trip, you seem to have put a lot of though into it and have chosen some very great roads. Have a ball

Thanks AZ. I think that road used to be US-666 before -191, thus the Devils Highway. I’ve ridden it several times in both directions, heading north is absolutely the best way. Looking like the weather is going to be nice.

Enjoy the ride and be safe avoiding the smartphone gawkers.

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Originally Posted by Ewreck

Enjoy the ride and be safe avoiding the smartphone gawkers.

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Absolutely. Just so many inattentive drivers. We were planning to stay in Cortez tonight, but good chance of some snow on Monarch and around Telluride today. So, the southern route. We've had to do this kind of change many times for spring rides. Will be great as we get south.

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Originally Posted by F6Bster

Absolutely. Just so many inattentive drivers. We were planning to stay in Cortez tonight, but good chance of some snow on Monarch and around Telluride today. So, the southern route. We've had to do this kind of change many times for spring rides. Will be great as we get south.

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I putted through some slush last Wednesday on my way to Laughlin. Not a fan of snow on a bike. The road salt splattered all over me n the bike sucked also.

Sounds like a great ride. You may want to consider a change of plan for your burger fix though, IMHO the Bodega Burger and Steakhouse in Soccoro now has the best green chili cheeseburger in the state. Angus beef ground on site, cooked to order and the house made chips are great also. Everything else I've eaten there has been better than good. Have a safe trip and we had a few flurries around Magdalena (west of Soccoro) this am.

Thanks NM. I just saw your post and it is funny as we had dinner at Bodegs. Very good. Their lobster bisque was exceptional.

Just got home from our trip to Arizona and New Mexico. Great time with my buddies doing some good riding. 2,240 miles for me in the 7 days. Had ridden most of the roads before, but the trip highlights for me were:
US-89A in AZ through Oak Creek Canyon and then up to Jerome and beyond.
Camp Verde to Payson (lots of nice sweepers)
Coronado Trail (always awesome; the Bear Wallow Fire in 2011 took out most of the trees from Hannigan Meadow to Alpine)
NM-152 from Silver City to I-25 (very nice road; another fire there in 2012 did a number also)

And last night we stayed at the Homewood Suites Buffalo Thunder (next to the Buffalo Thunder Casino). Just a wonderful place to stay and for what you get it is a bargain. We were upgraded to a 2-bedroom suite with one King and two Queen beds. Great free dinner and breakfast. And the casino was just next door!!!

I did not check gas mileage on the trip, but it looks like it was probably around 46-48mpg. We did not do too much interstate riding (just the first day primarily) so the mileage drops down to near 40 when running the Interstate, but about 50mpg at other times. This bike loves the high elevations. Gas was more expensive in NM and AZ than here in Colorado. Several places it was $2.99/gallon. Spent $122.45 on gas for 2,240 miles, so I was pleased.

Feels good to be home!!!!

Congratulations on planning and executing a great ride. You definitely rode some the best roads in the area. I look forward to seeing you in Cortez and hearing about your ride in more detail.

Glad you made it home safe.
Az Wingrider